Mineral Area College Professor Receives Statewide Teaching Award
PARK HILLS, Mo. — Mineral Area College history and political science instructor Rodney Wilson has received the Excellence in Teaching Award from the Missouri Community College Association.
Wilson received the award Nov. 5 at the association’s annual convention in Branson. He serves as coordinator of MAC’s History and Political Science Department.
Students describe Wilson’s classes as engaging and transformative, while colleagues say he encourages curiosity and helps students connect history to the world around them, according to the college.
His work extends beyond the classroom. Wilson has spent hundreds of hours reviewing photographs and historical articles to document the history of Mineral Area College and its predecessor, Flat River Junior College. With help from colleagues, he established a campus museum featuring the institution’s history and the personal stories behind it.
Wilson also gives presentations to community groups and campus audiences, sharing the history of the college and the people who helped build it.
His career at MAC began in 2011 as an adjunct instructor. In 2014, he became assistant director of the EXCEL TRIO program, and he joined the full-time faculty in 2022.
The MCCA award follows another major recognition earlier this year: the American Association of Community Colleges’ Dale P. Parnell Distinguished Faculty Award. That honor recognizes community college instructors for their impact in the classroom and in their communities.
